Once the book censor reads a book that captures his imagination, he is lost. A victim of new thoughts that worm their way in. It leads him to ask questions about existence and colors his experiences in a new way. This becomes dangerous because the more he reads, the further down the rabbit hole he goes. And real reading is illegal. His journey includes trying to save his daughter from her "affliction" of imagination. The ending leaves you wanting.

In this week of thrifted finds, I bring this set. This looks like an interesting fusion of sci-fi and fantasy. While I have all three of the trilogy, the last isn't original to the others. I can tell because the page ends have aged differently, and the cover has silver around the artwork. The order of books is The Copper Crown, The Throne of Scone, and The Silver Branch. I've heard on Instagram that these are complex and beautiful.

Book mail! Not only does this sound interesting, the cover art is stunning. I truly cannot resist great artwork. Plus, I've heard only good things about this one.

"What about the department head? How come he gets to keep the books he banned?" The question tumbled out before he could stop it.
"People who make the rules are allowed to break them."
"It's not fair"

So good!! I was so surprised at something major that happened near the end. It was a true holy crap moment. I also laughed at a key touchstone point. This story has intrigue, colonialism, class struggles, environmentalism, and poverty, among other things. I found the mythology about the royalty story fascinating. Great mix of sci-fi and fantasy. I loved the main characters. The world building is so well done. Standalone & low spice. TW violence.

I found the cutest board book for my grandbaby today. The artwork is incredible. And maybe I am trying to indoctrinate her a little. 😏

My daughter and I went out for some retail therapy and to commiserate. I got this because it sounded interesting and timely.

Still processing the insanity that is our country right now. I'm disappointed that so many people could watch him and think, "Yeah, that guy will be good for us." How on earth do we see this so differently? It is clear that this is not a democracy, this is an oligarchy. I think I'm currently in the anger stage. It will be interesting to see what happens next.

I stumbled across this book on tiktok right before Halloween, and it intrigued me. I had no idea the author also lives in Maine. Small world! I really enjoyed this. It is an interesting take on the Sleepy Hollow legend. I didn't feel like this was predictable either, which added to the suspense for me. It looks at what some people will do for power and for revenge. I would read more by this author. This is a standalone and very low spice.

I chose to read this for the Gothic vibes in this Halloween season and boy, did it deliver. At first I thought I knew the direction it was headed in, but I was wrong. This has amazing suspense, disturbing imagery and is beautifully written. Even though the ending wraps everything up well, there are still some things to ponder. I absolutely loved this book and I would definitely read more by this author. TW for body horror and drug use.

This was really interesting. A Marine Corps legend I first heard about in boot camp, and why I read it. I was curious as soon as I heard of it. He really breaks down the how and why of so many things this country & our military do & how they are flawed. He also gives his plan of how things can be done better. Being written after only the 1st World War and before nuclear weapons, some of the ideas are dated. Not to say some wouldn't still work tho.

You can never have too many knitting books, right?

This book is currently free for the Kindle on Amazon. The author is Manda Mazanec. I'm just helping spread the word for a fellow former woman Marine.

I'll be starting this tonight.

I finished this last night. I liked the writing, and the storytelling was interesting. I just didn't enjoy this as much as I expected. I did finish it, so that says something.

For much of the story, you have no idea about the why. Which I think adds to the suspense. This felt a lot like being on a rollercoaster blindfolded. The fear of not knowing what might happen next is delicious. And it really unfolds brilliantly. It covered so many themes I wasn't expecting! Which gave it great depth. Even at the end, it just kept giving me more things to ponder. I would love to know some specific backstory. I really enjoyed this.

If it's a gift card, it doesn't count as buying books. Right?

This Indigenous Peoples Day is a great time to donate to the Native American Rights Fund. Their website is narf.org for anyone interested. I read this book 5 years ago and highly recommend it. It is definitely not the whitewashed history they teach in the majority of schools. The book Lies My Teacher Told Me by James W Loewen explains some of the why they are so whitewashed.

I absolutely loved this. The storytelling is chef's kiss. It definitely has a Dark Crystal vibe to some extent. It was so well done and had such great depth. Definitely more than I was expecting. Themes include strained parental relationships, good vs evil, friendship, courage, and belief. It gets a little dark in spots, and not everyone has a good ending. I would definitely read this author again. (The libro.fm narrator was excellent.)

I've got to figure out a good way to store or display these. I'm also sad I didn't think of collecting these sooner. I've visited so many other libraries too! The top two on the right are from the same library in Cobh Ireland. A kid won a design a card contest so they had two options and gave me both. (I do own the tagged book but haven't read it yet.)

I really enjoyed seeing Bilbo's personal growth along the way. Events out of his control conspire to throw him far outside of his comfort zone, and he rises to the challenge. It did run me through all the emotions though. It has suspense, fear, wonder, joy and sadly even heartbreak. I am currently traveling home myself and also very much identify with Bilbo in wanting to be back in my very own comfortable hobbit hole.

I bought this at Parnassus Books in Ketchikan Alaska today. The cover caught me and then the blurb mentioned tea and I was a goner. It sounds like a super fun read.

I wasn't able to get a library card in Juneau, but I did find this super cool bookstore in town. I also snagged a fantasy book that comes next in a series I already own so that was exciting. They had a cute dog here too.

A beautiful gift from my dressage instructor. We frequently talk books, and she knows I love Jane Austen. This has gold edges and a built-in ribbon bookmark.

This is a long overdue re-read.

My newest book haul. Not counting the one I bought off tiktok this morning at 1am.

This was so freaking good. It is basically a book version of a D&D campaign, so I couldn't resist making the themed photo. It is both hilarious, and heartbreaking. And of course action packed as expected. When I thought I knew what might happen next, I was proved wrong. Clearly the author has played the game. You don't need to be a player to enjoy this, but it doesn't hurt. I highly recommend this one and will definitely read this author again.

I finished this last night. While the characters' story is fiction, the events in the story are based on true events. This packs an emotional punch. I loved the writing. There is a bit of a twist that I did not see coming. I admit that seeing the current images coming out of Gaza also made it a tough read, for me, for the realism it added.

This started strong but lost me along the way. I didn't hate it, but I didn't enjoy it either. I won't be reading more of this series. The narrator did a great job though.

"I want to believe it's worth it," I say. "The revolution, I mean. But I'm scared."
"I think it will be." Kenan smiles softly. "Empires have collapsed throughout history. They rise, they build, and they fall. Nothing lasts forever. Not even our pain."

Who else does this to themselves? #moodreader

I finished the 1st book in this series last night. It ended in a cliffhanger, so I'm glad I have the omnibus . Inspired by the 80s movie Labyrinth, this is a slow burn enemies to lovers romantacy series. I'm really enjoying it. There has been a little repetition in some of the writing, but it's not enough to spoil the story for me. I'm really rooting for the characters and am intrigued by what might happen next. No spice yet but definite angst.

My souvenir from the Library of Congress gift shop. This just seemed fitting for both me and the moment.

I got to check off a bucket list experience today. It was incredible. The place is stunning in person. I highly recommend a visit if you get a chance.

Next up. This hotel chair isn't a bad reading spot. (I tagged along with hubby to a conference.)

I stayed up til midnight to finish this book. That's how deep the hook was set. It is weird. And it will have you questioning reality at the end. It also has some serious wtf moments. It was such a fun, though wild, ride. And I absolutely loved the writing.

Current travel read. Definitely finding it interesting so far. My daughter loved it and wanted to be able to discuss it with someone. She did warn me that it was weird though.

Waiting my turn at the barber. I almost always read a Star Wars book while there. I went to hairdressers for years. Turns out barber's are faster, more precise and less expensive. Of course this is just my own personal experience. No shade to hairdressers at all. Maybe I had bad experiences, or am just peculiar.

I started this today and stayed up late to finish it. This is just so beautifully written. I'm always in awe of writers that paint such a vivid picture with their words. Not only that, but evoking deep feelings at the same time. I personally related to some of the family relationship issues at some points. I liked that she gave context to each countries history as she told the stories of her family there, and here in the U.S. Highly recommend.

Overall, I enjoyed this. There was one description of a woman near the beginning that I didn't like. I felt it was completely unnecessary. It also had a mystery surrounding smuggling that I wasn't a huge fan of. I was lost in some places. However, I should be clear that mystery, in general, isn't something I gravitate to. It definitely has angst, and an HEA. No cliffhanger and it is the 1st of a series. I won't be reading any of the others.

My current Libro.fm audiobook choice. I'm loving it so far.

I am slowly making my way through this as a buddy read with my sister. As with all short story collections, some I love, some I dislike, and some are meh. The really great ones leave us something to ruminate on for a good while. And I really love this cover artwork. (After some oppressive heat lately, I was surprised to be chilly when reading outside today.)

Did you know there are free audiobooks on Spotify? I only recently learned this. You are only limited to 15 hours a month though. I just finished listening to this and it was very sweet. I needed that dose of sweet. It was not what I expected at all, but I did really enjoy it. It also had a cast for the reading which added to its charm. This author also wrote A Little Princess, which was a favorite movie of mine. (The Shirley Temple version.)

So far this is a fun read. I got this outdoor table at a discount due to the rub mark. I'm thinking about distressing it even more and adding handles in the back to make it a shield. Maybe even painting a sigil on it. Just for fun. It would be very D&D fashion.

"I wish we were being broadcast live on every channel and smartphone in the world so everyone could see what they're allowing to happen to children." (Not part of the quote: Sadly this hasn't helped do what it should considering all the smartphone footage of the children in Gaza, Palestine.)

I absolutely loved everything about this. It was my first Brandon Sanderson book and the storytelling was chef's kiss. Clearly, I will need to read more of this author! I finished it 2 days ago and have been thinking about what to say in my review. All I really have is 5 stars, no notes. This is going in my top 5 of all time.

Snagged at goodwill this morning.

My latest book mail. Thanks to Pango and Ebay.

Who else is still processing the Neil Gaiman news? He was one of my favorites. My thoughts are with the brave women that came forward.

"It might seem that the person who can feel for others is doomed in life. Isn't one person's pain enough? Why must a person like Tress feel for two, or more? Yet I've found that the people who are the happiest are the ones who learn best how to feel. It takes practice, you know. Effort. And those who (late in life) have been feeling for two, three, or a thousand different people ...well, turns out they've had a leg up on everyone else all along."